Thursday, 9 January 2020 - Monthly Climate Summary for Tasmania - Product code IDCKGC17R0

Tasmania in December 2019: cool start then the hottest day on record; wet in the west, dry in the northeast

The 30th brought record high temperatures to much of Tasmania, including a December State record of 41.9 °C at Friendly Beaches, but the first part of the month had been relatively cool. Westerly winds for much of the month meant the west of Tasmania was wetter than usual, but the northeast was much drier than usual.

Wet in the west, dry in the northeast

• Westerly winds and cold fronts were dominant for the first part of the month, bringing plenty of rain to the west but little apart from light showers to the eastern half of Tasmania
• Mount Read in the west had its highest December daily rainfall on record (having broken its November daily record twice), and totals were well above average through the western highlands
• The northeastern half of the State received very little rain, with some areas having less than 10 mm of rainfall for the whole month
• Several sites reported their lowest total December rainfall since at least 1994; in some cases much longer, or even their driest December on record

Record hot day after a cold start

• The month started off cool, with several sites in the west and south having their coldest December day on record on the 2nd or 3rd, and a few sites in the south having their lowest December temperature on record on the 4th
• The 30th was exceptionally hot across Tasmania as strong northwesterly winds brought warm air from the mainland; two-thirds of the sites with at least 20 years of observations had their hottest December day on record
• Friendly Beaches reached 41.9 °C, the second-highest temperature ever reported in Tasmania (just behind Scamander's 42.2 °C on 30 January 2009) and the highest December temperature ever reported in Tasmania
• Swansea (Francis Street) reached 41.1 °C, whilst Hobart (Ellerslie Road) and Hobart Airport reached 40.8 °C, also exceeding the old December mark of 40.6 °C set at Hobart (Ellerslie Road) on 30 December 1897
• Almost all of Tasmania recorded accumulated monthly Forest Fire Danger Index in the highest 10% of historical values for December, and highest on record in the northeast quarter of the State; much of the eastern half of the State had its highest December daily Forest Fire Danger Index on record on the 30th
• Overall, days were warmer than average in the east but cooler than average in the west
• Cool nights were common in the first half of the month, but there were several mild mornings toward the end of the month
• The Tasmanian mean temperature was 0.50 °C warmer than average; the mean maximum temperature was 0.96 °C above average but the mean minimum just 0.04 °C above average and the coolest for December since 2008

Hobart (Ellerslie Road)

• Hobart (Ellerslie Road) reached 40.8 °C on the 30th, the equal-second highest temperature ever recorded at the site (behind 41.8 °C on 4 January 2013) and the highest for December (previously 40.6 °C on 30 December 1897)
• Hobart's coolest day was on the 3rd when the temperature reached 15.8 °C
• The mean daily maximum temperature for Hobart (Ellerslie Road) was 21.8 °C, which is 1.4 °C above the long-term average of 20.4 °C
• Total rainfall for Hobart (Ellerslie Road) was 16.0 mm, which is 28% of the long-term average of 56.3 mm and the driest December since 2002
• The mean daily minimum temperature for Hobart (Ellerslie Road) was 11.3 °C, which is 0.4 °C above the long-term average of 10.9 °C
• The coldest morning was 5.8 °C on the 4th, and the warmest morning was on the 21st when the minimum temperature was 15.4 °C

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Maps
	Observed	Anomaly	Decile rank
Total rainfall
Mean daily maximum temperatures
Mean daily minimum temperatures

Click on a map to show it full size in a pop-up window

* note: there are large gaps in the historical record at this site, so it is possible a higher value has gone unreported

* note: there are gaps in the historical record at this site, so it is possible a lower value has gone unreported

Note:
* Hobart Airport, Orford, Friendly Beaches and Tunnack are also records for any month of the year.
† 41.9 °C at Friendly Beaches is the highest December temperature ever recorded in Tasmania. Swansea (Francis Street) reported 41.1 °C, but is not included in the table above as the site has a relatively short record. 40.8 °C at Hobart and Hobart Airport also exceed the old mark of 40.6 °C set at Hobart (Ellerslie Road) on 30 December 1897.

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top

Extremes Maps Records Summaries Important notes the top